


Skyrim AU (WIP title)

by NighttimePhilosopher



Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Blood and Injury, Bosmer Peridot, Dirty Talk, Dovahkiin | Dragonborn Lapis Lazuli, Dovahzul, Dragons, Draugr, Established Relationship, F/F, Implied Relationships, Implied Sexual Content, Magic, Magic-Users, Panic Attacks, Redguard/Breton Amethyst, Relationship(s), Skyrim AU, Vaginal Fingering, Werewolves, amedot - Freeform, and i love amedot, how many times can I imply that amethyst is a werewolf without outright stating it, i miss skyrim okay?, let me grieve, paycheck to paycheck life in the province of skyrim featuring my favourite gays, rating change 'cause chapper 2 has some segs, trolls are gross, tw blood, use of the word bimbo
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-17
Updated: 2018-04-07
Packaged: 2018-11-01 20:00:53
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10929027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NighttimePhilosopher/pseuds/NighttimePhilosopher
Summary: Wandering adventurers Amethyst and Peridot go on a simple quest to find some merchant’s stolen ‘golden claw’ (pshh, easy) and end up becoming a part of a whole lot more than they bargained for at a dusty old tomb. Something about a Dovahkiin? Whatever that is, amiright?(Or, my way of mourning my copy of ESV: Skyrim not working.)///Currently rewriting the end of chapter 3 so it fits better with the in-progress chapter 4///





	1. The Golden Claw

**Author's Note:**

> Title is a wip – I got no idea what to call it because I have no idea what this is.  
> So, my copy of Skyrim stopped saving and now my PS3 is whack; this is the result while I wait for it to fix. (if anyone knows how to get rid of corrupted game data on PS3 PLEASE let me know.)  
> Enjoy storie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1JvqHnSHfc Atmosphere

The raging blizzard howled violently, as if trying to dissuade anyone from reaching the entrance to the barrow. It was freezing and icy, inhospitable to even a brave fern outfitted for the conditions the weather set. The snow whipped up and made it hard to see, their map thrashing madly in the wind. The gale was incredibly angry, a force wanting to be known, thirsting for a fight like the Nord spirits undoubtedly entombed in the crypt it gave shelter to. Amethyst’s noise of astonishment could barely be heard over the shouting.  

“Whoa…”

Peridot shivered in her leather armour, keeping the licking flames she held in her hands close to her body, but not close enough to singe her gear. “S-So, just up th-these stairs?”

“Heck yeah. Bleak falls Barrow.” Amethyst affirmed, an excited spark in her eyes as she gazed upon what she could see of the impressive black arches the burial location possessed. They bent far into the sky and came back down to meet the earth again, framing the entrance like a majestic gateway.

“Good. G-Great. Excellent.” Peridot muttered under her hood. “Let’s get inside.”

“Yeah. We gotta be careful though.” Amethyst warned. “I smell more blood.”

The two, while making their way up the treacherous mountain to reach the menacing barrow, had come across several bodies, all rogue bandits. They had seemed to be holding out in an abandoned tower outpost a little ways off the beaten track, and when Amethyst and Peridot had come across them, they had been stabbed with something sharp, multiple times. The culprit was unknown.

The climb was steep up to the not-so-welcoming ancient architecture, but it was nothing they weren’t already used to, travelling by foot being their expertise. Feet hitting solid ground in the form of steps was a relief from the sludgy, tedious snow, causing less energy to be expended walking – and leaving more available for fighting.

When they reached the top of the first set of stairs, Amethyst grabbed Peridot’s wrist. “Something went down here. Stay low.”

Extinguishing her flames, Peridot quietly slid her hunting bow from her back as they crouched, entering the courtyard-like area and slinking to a nearby pillar for cover. Amethyst lifted her head to scent the air for more clarity while Peridot readied some arrows from her basic quiver.

“Don’t think there’s anyone or anything with a heart still beating here. At least outside.”

She stood up, Peridot reaching for her as she stepped out into the open. Peridot listened to her booted footsteps as she explored further, and then got confirmation.

“Whoa, yep, dead bodies. Come out Peri.”

Her leather boots clacked as she caught up to where Amethyst stood in her plated ones. She joined her in following a trail of blood and slashed bandits up the several sets of stairs to the heavy crypt doors, the wind still whipping in their ears.

“Someone’s gone on a killing spree.” Peridot remarked as she took a few unused arrows from a Redguard corpse. ‘The dead won’t be needing it anytime soon’ was their philosophy when it came to looting bodies, especially as nomadic wanderers or ‘adventurers’ as they liked to romanticise themselves. They took all that they could get.

“Still ready to find that claw?” Amethyst checked, to which her partner nodded. As _adventurers_ , the two had set out to find a merchant’s prized possession – a ‘golden claw’ – that was stolen by bandits who had made camp at Bleak Falls Barrow. With the promise of gold, their tight food budget convinced them to agree to the task of getting it back to him.

With that, they pulled at the adamant metal doors against the gusting wind, and shut out the cold as they closed them. The atmosphere was a lot quieter and darker, the only prominent sound being the echo of the door booming shut. There was a crackle of lit torches, but otherwise, the crypt felt untouched and eerily empty. The bandits were pretty brave to be living here.

Amethyst’s thick hand immediately went to her nose as Peridot slipped off her thin hood to reveal blond hair, cradling a small flame in her palm. “By the _Eight_ , I freakin’ _hate_ the stink of these tombs. I’ve only ever hadta hide in their entrances before and _even then_ I couldn’t stand ‘em.”

“There’s tail-less skeever bodies littered everywhere.” Peridot’s disgust reverberated around the huge open room. Sure enough, there were stiff, ragged remains of the foul, overgrown rodents lying around on the disintegrated stone. Possessing no tails meant that they had been cut off, cooked and consumed, possibly by the bandits.

“Watch out for that Ataxia dude.” Amethyst warned, holding a hand out to Peridot as she examined a carcass. “It’s still on their teeth when they’re dead.”

“I wasn’t going to touch—ooo, more dead bodies.”

Amethyst passed a pillar and caught up to Peridot, finding a campfire with an unattended cooking set, surrounded by pelt sleeping bags and completed by bloody, lifeless bandits.

“Mercenary? Looks like brute tactics for some of ‘em.”

“They have dagger wounds in their _backs_ , Amethyst.”

“I said _some_ of them. Pshh.” Amethyst folded her gauntleted arms and rolled her dark eyes.

“Whatever. Let’s keep going deeper. The claw isn’t going to be out here.” Peridot turned to make her way down into the dusty catacombs.

Amethyst’s grin turned wolfish, her eyes already laughing as she grabbed Peridot’s waist. She pressed her lips into her partner’s revealed ear teasingly, professing a lusty tone.“Ohoho Peri, you know _I_ can go deeper.” Her hands slid over Peridot’s wide hips as she pushed her metal front to Peridot’s leather back. 

Anyone would've flinched at the provoking and cheesy flirt, but Peridot was not just anyone. “Certainly _tempting_ , Amethyst, but not the time or place.”

Amethyst chuckled, letting go, not before slapping her broader palm against her girlfriend's armored ass whilst brushing past her affectionately.

“Definitely not the place.” She gave a small shiver as the deceased atmosphere started to dawn on her. Amethyst re-placed her hand on her button nose as the smell of death and decay got worse as they continued.

“This place is so _icky_.” Amethyst complained, her steel armour clunking as she walked through the well-lit cavern. “I mean, rolling in dead things is fun, but I don’t like walking _amongst_ dead things, y’know? …Hey, don’t look at me like that, there’s a difference! ‘specially if the dead worshipped dragons and cult junk like that! An’ are funky and super old. Ooo, burial urns!”

Amethyst could have no inhibitions at times. As she ran up to a beautifully chiselled table to fiddle with equally beautiful Nordic burial urns, this was one of them.

“Amethyst, that’s not advisable!” Peridot cautioned with obvious alarm. “The riches left in those are to honor the dead. And whilst I don’t have access to your thoughts, I myself highly lack the desire of having angered warrior spirits on my tail in my near future.”

“Man, if the Black-Briars want some easy cash, they should just come pay this place a visit.” Amethyst seemed to not hear her partner’s fright, instead digging her hand into the hollow center of the pretty ceramic container, blabbing on. “If there was outrage, they’d say they’re entitled anyway ‘cause they’re Nords and these are their ancestor’s belongings.” She pulled her hand out to open her palm, displaying three gold. “Three septims for the Amebank. Whoop.” Her hand slipped into a satchel somewhere around her waist under her armor.

“Let’s just--keep going, okay?” Peridot pulled Amethyst’s flabby arm along with her, making her stumble along. “We’re going to receive plenty reward when we find the golden claw.”

“Somebody’s scared of ghhooosstsss.” Teased Amethyst.

Peridot ignored her and walked stiffly ahead. She walked so far ahead in fact that Amethyst lost sight of her beyond the invading overgrown roots and dankness of the underground ruins. Her heart accelerated and she raced forward when she heard a high-pitched yelp. Admittedly, she tripped over an embedded root as she came to find Peridot standing in the doorway to a new room, which made an unnecessarily loud crash and caused Peridot to jump. Amethyst picked herself up and came to Peridot’s side, slipping their hands together.

“What is it?” she panted, chest heaving.

“There’s another dead body.”

“Oh…”

“He has poison arrows embedded in his flesh.”

“Oh. That’s new. You’re okay though, right?”

“Yes. I think that he set off an ancient trap.” She walked further into the room, gesturing to the Nordic art that decorated it, which consisted of birds, snakes, whales and the more obvious choice of men’s bearded faces. “There’s these matching carvings all around the room that seem linked to those arrow dispensers in the wall there. I think he failed and our culprit succeeded. Since, well, the gate is open for us.”

“Sweet. Let’s go _deeper_ , shall we?”

“I do want to examine these images, but it’s best we keep moving.”

The next room was an end to the boring tunnels they had traversed through, opening to another treasure-filled stone table and a strange descending staircase that seemed to spiral downward.

“Treasure~!!!” Amethyst bellowed with the voice of a bard, marching quickly to a big chest. “Ugh, skeever stink down the staircase.” she noted as she passed the crude flight of stairs. “Heyyyy it's unloooockked~!!” she sang, throwing the chest open. Peridot stood by as she threw out the contained objects, Amethyst singing the names of them too. “Arrows! Gooold! Potioooon thiing!!”

“Are you sure you didn’t have bard ancestors?” Peridot questioned, standing behind her. “You have such a powerful voice!”

“You can push it to its limits with that tongue of yours, Periiiidoooott~!!” Amethyst warbled cheekily. Peridot just spluttered with embarrassment, picking up the looted items. She added the older arrows to her quiver. Amethyst followed her to the rickety-looking staircase.

“Eugh, those smell bad.” Amethyst scented the arrows as they descended the tight, wooden staircase. “Like off meat. Or super dead flesh. Yeah, let’s go with that. You gotta get rid of them ‘cause they’re gonna overpower your good smell.”

“I don’t care how an arrow smells. An arrow’s an arrow, and I’m going to use them.” Peridot stated.

“Yeah, but it smells like you’ve been grave robbing.”

“Perhaps that is because we _have_ been grave robbing, Amethyst. _You_ have!” Peridot growled.

"'kay."

They reached the bottom of the stairs and felt relieved to be on firm ground, even though it was several more meters underground than they were before. They trusted in the gods and the architects of the barrow that it wouldn’t come down.

“You little _bastard!_ ” Amethyst roared, Peridot hearing her steel gauntlet crack something. She realised it wasn’t directed at her when they were surrounded by fat, wiry skeevers. Flicking a hand to a sheath on her thigh, Peridot slashed at the face of a leaping rodent with her iron dagger, killing it and splattering its foul blood on the stone wall.

More snaps and squeaks came from behind Peridot, and she turned to find Amethyst beating the rats with her fists. She kicked one in its gut, breaking ribs before stepping on its head to put it out of its misery.

“Told you I smelled them.” Amethyst panted, smirking at Peridot.

They continued on to another open foyer, passing through it quickly. Their feet started to stick and clump with something. Peridot lifted her boot to find its base thick with spider web, and Amethyst barely whispered ‘frostbites’.

The women aimed to be lighter in their footing as they slowly approached an opening, adorned with wispy fine strands that marked a spider’s residence. Luckily for them, the webs looked pre-cut, hacked with most likely a sword to make entrance to the nested cavern simple.

“It’s dead.” Amethyst remarked with faint wonder, looking over the great exoskeleton of a very big, very unmoving frostbite spider. She put a palm between its beady clusters of eyes and rocked the light body despite it being taller than her. Its legs seemed to creak and give way to her ministrations. “Gross…”

Peridot crouched next to Amethyst, not letting the creature’s appearance bother her. “This is perfect” she muttered contently, holding a vial to the deceased arachnid’s fluffy mandibles.

“Uuhh, what’re you doing?”

“Collecting frostbite venom, of course. To apply to my arrows.”

“ _Malicious_.” Amethyst commented, voice hinting pride at her girlfriend’s sinister prospects. “Glad you shot me with a love arrow instead.”

Peridot straightened her form, sealing the thin vial with a cork. She hid it away, sending Amethyst a wink and some kind of finger gun. “Pechuu~”

Amethyst grinned at her dorkiness, then returned her attention to the room. The walls were lined with eggsacs so large and spongy they could fit in them, and under the spider she realised there was a trap door. Behind the giant corpse was a dead Dark elf.

“Another one.” She sighed, crouching to the faceplanted body. “He’s got all spider webs on him.”

“Did the spider get him?”

“Not sure, but he’s bloody. Mystery murderer at it again, probably. Y’know, I really hope we don’t run into them, but the further we get, the closer we are to them. Gods, they better realise we’re not bandits.”

“We have better armour and charismatic personalities, so they should be able to discriminate us from…him.” She pointed at the poor dead elf.

They continued out of the web-infested area, hoping the large eggs didn’t want to hatch anytime soon. Pillars that held tirelessly seemed to grow as the rooms got taller, and the walls here were neatly dugout, meant to be the resting places of fallen warriors. The crypt became more…crypt-like, with Amethyst having to cover her nose again.

“Ew, so musty. I can taste it in my mouth.”

Peridot suddenly felt cold, and she moved close behind Amethyst, her heart feeling uneasy. Every sound, from pebbles tumbling to their own footfalls made her jump. She stayed away from torchless and unlit areas, fearful of what could be hiding in them. She reached out her lightly gloved hand and gripped Amethyst’s strongly padded one, holding tightly. Amethyst was security in this negative air and creepy atmosphere.

Amethyst looked over her shoulder, blowing long black hair out of her face. “You believe in the rumours? Are you scared of the draugr comin’ t’ getcha?” she teased, wearing a smug grin. When she got no reaction from her smaller friend and witnessed her averted eyes, her expression changed to that of concern. She stopped plodding along, turning to face Peridot and taking her other hand.

“Aww hey, you okay?” she cooed, trying to meet Peridot’s gaze. When she finally decided to look up, her mouth was thin and uncertain and her eyes were wide with anticipation and fear. The torchlight only seemed to amplify her features, and she whimpered.

“This place is intimidating.” Peridot admitted, darting her eyes around warily and trying to lean towards Amethyst. “I’m freaking out a little.”

Amethyst accepted her closer, their armour separating them from true intimacy but their gestures meaning much the same. “It’s okay, Peri. I’m gonna protect you from any danger, okay? Draugr are harmless sacks of bones anyway. People are just scared ‘cause of that story with the dragon. Yeeaah, apparently a dragon recently burned down a village and all, but draugr aren’t gonna resurrect or whatever people say. They died a long time ago, no need to be scared of them now.”

“Y-Yeah, okay.” Peridot nodded, showing a little smile. Amethyst bought their lips together and kissed her, causing Peridot to grin against her. They stared each other warmly in the eyes when they pulled away.

“ ** _Qiilaan us dilon!!_** ”

“What the heck was that?!” Amethyst yelped, eyes wide as her head shot to the next hall, where the grisly yell had echoed from. Peridot gripped onto the shoulder of Amethyst’s gear in fright, blazing a small flame in a cage of her fingers and palm. The two crouched, not to hide (there was pretty much no place to), but to quiet their footsteps as they followed the path.

“Dir, volaan!!” Came another gurgling shout, and as they hit a corner, they saw purple flashes and illuminated figures on the opposite wall. The grunts of a woman could be heard amongst inhuman speech and the clang of weapon against weapon. A body stumbled and fell into Amethyst and Peridot’s view, ancient onyx armour torn open and chest cavity slashed.

Grey skin barely clung to bones as fermented blood struggled to seep out of large, sword-inflicted wounds. A helmeted head had fallen to look at them in hiding, but the eyes were unseeing and hollow, teeth in a permanent and unsettling snarl from lack of lips and gum to conceal them. Arms were long and thin like branches, muscles built up from swinging weapons somehow remaining on such an ancient corpse.

But this man had just died.

“It’s a draugr!” Peridot whisper-screamed behind a ready to spring Amethyst. She lit another fire in her free hand as more ghoulish threats and determined shouting filled the caverns. “I-I’ll turn the other ones to ash!”

“Hold on.” Amethyst murmured, her mane frizzling a little as she held Peridot back. “Someone’s doin’ the job for us.”

“How many are there?”

“From the sounds of it, one. I think the other person is the one who’s been trailing bandits...”

Before Peridot could reply, a lithe cloaked figure rammed the remaining draugr into the wall in front of them, roaring with effort. It gave them full view of the offending weapon that had tasted much blood today; a glowing, wispy sword, conjured by its wielder. Its purple, ghostly form flickered as it sunk into rotted flesh.

“A magic user…” gasped Peridot.

The sword stuck through the abdomen of the undead creature, pinning it to the wall as bony fingers wrapped around its sharp edges to struggle and pry. Bright glowing blue eyes stared down their mage enemy as its second life was coming to an end.

“Aav…dilon…” the stinking creature croaked, jerking its head forward to taunt its undoer. The cyan spirit disappeared from its being in a swift motion.

“Disgusting.” The robed woman muttered as the corpse fell to the ground. Short, black hair flopped out of the veiling dark blue hood as she stepped back from her kill. Peridot and Amethyst watched in anticipation as the conjurer kept her eyes on the undead body, form-fitting garb settling as the fight slowly left her. Her covered shoulders relaxed and a sigh was audible as she turned to go the way Amethyst and Peridot had come from. The two flinched as her gaze came upon them, and the immediate visible glare on her face petrified them. They’d just seen what she could do to the undead…

The adventurers jolted upright, their armour luckily not jarring at the fast movement. Amethyst held her hands up in submission while Peridot held careful flames behind her.

“N-Not bandits!!” she barked nervously, forcing a grin as she kept her eyes on the dark ones that glowered from under the obscuring hood. She’d be lying to say her attention wasn’t darting to the blade too, which dangled in a sure grip. This mysterious woman could swing at any time, and Amethyst wasn’t sure how much damage her armour could take against it. “We’re…not bandits…is what I meant...heh...” The stall might not be effective at all depending on just who this person was, but Amethyst gave it a shot.  

“What are you doing here?” The mage demanded, voice low and careful. Amethyst suddenly realised how short she was in comparison. Taunting back with the same question mightn't be the best idea...

“We’re looking for the golden claw.” Peridot spoke up, moving to Amethyst’s side. The concealed woman was easily taller than both of them, but somehow she felt a bit smaller to Amethyst when Peridot did that.

A look of blankness overtook the obscured mage before comprehension dawned on her face. She reached into her ocean blue robe at the chest and fiddled before drawing out something sharp. They braced themselves, Amethyst’s black hair poofing up in agitation and dark face crinkling in a snarl.

“You mean this?”

With an olive hand, she pulled out something glinting and golden, with three prongs and a long, thin wrist. On its palm were animal carvings. They hadn’t been given a description of what to find by their merchant client, just that it was gold and claw-shaped. And that intricate hunk of metal looked awfully a lot like a claw.

Amethyst was stupefied, features softening in surprise. “I-yeah, I think that’s it!”

“I found it on a bandit. It activated a door deeper in the tomb.” She explained, her voice without hostility revealed to be quite soft and quiet.

There was a short, awkward session where Amethyst and Peridot stared at what they had journeyed into the creepy crypt for. The other woman must’ve seen it on their faces, because she spoke up about it. “You two can have it if you want. I don’t have any other use for it.” She stepped forward and pushed it into Amethyst’s hands. Her fingers were very thin and had remnants of conjuration magic on them.

Amethyst looked down at the claw, then up at the philanthropist murderer. “Uhh, thanks?”

“It’s nothing.” She said nonchalantly, moving backwards fluidly, almost ghost-like as the bottom of her robe swayed in a non-existent breeze. “Farewell.” She said, and she was already turning and dashing away.

“Did that just happen?” Peridot asked, easily as bewildered as Amethyst judging by the confusion in her green eyes.

Amethyst shrugged. “I guess?”

They found themselves gazing at the carnage the woman had left behind. The draugr were out of place in their own tomb, one slumped and sitting against the stone wall and one looking like it had been knocked out in a brawl, save for the gash in its chest. They were lucky that they didn’t join the dead.

Amethyst turned to Peridot, holding the weighty claw. “Whelp, we got what we came for. Let’s just get outta this place. I don’t wanna see any more legends in the flesh.”    


	2. Reward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amethyst and Peridot chill out after their adventure. Maybe a bit too much though....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i was tryna buffer this but I can't help it I wanna post! The lack of amedot as of late was killing me and I had some finished stuff lyin' around, so...  
> A very special thanks to Equilateralwaffle (f0rt1ss1m0/DarkHorseBlueSky) for beta reading this chapter!

A drawstring coin purse jingled as it was dropped into Amethyst’s gloved hand. On the shop’s wooden counter, amongst potions, food and trinkets, was the glinting form of the golden claw, placed in the bare spot it was in before its theft.

“Thankyou _so much_ for taking care of those thieves.” The sincerity in the man’s voice caught them off-guard, making it evident how much he loved the claw. “The Riverwood Trader is back to the way it used to be!”

Amethyst and Peridot smiled awkwardly at the fair Imperial merchant, their client, sweating themselves to death in full body armour in the cramped shop. It wasn’t exactly _them_ who took care of the thieves, or who retrieved the claw, but he didn’t need to know that.

“Yeah, no biggie!” said Amethyst, happy to have food and mead money.

“We only had to kill, um, some of them!” Peridot stuttered, trying to pump up their repertoire as fearsome warriors. “And the barrow wasn’t in the least bit terrifying. Yes.” Amethyst slung her arm around Peridot’s shoulder for the effect of admirable camaraderie and bravery. And to make Peridot look more confident and convincing (speechcraft wasn’t really her thing).

“Really?” His voice was gravelly with surprise. “We’re in the shadow of Bleak falls barrow, and not a day goes by where I don’t get chills looking up at that place in the mountains.” The tomb they’d been to was just a mountain hike away from Riverwood. The bandits didn’t go far when they stole the claw.

“Maybe it’s ‘cause we’re not locals?” Amethyst suggested gracelessly. They’d been just passing through the town when they heard of the theft case ( _and_ the reward).

“You must see worse things on the road.” The man seemed to conclude, running a hand through his aging black hair. “Where are you two from? Valenwood?” he gestured to Peridot’s pointed ears and olive skin. “Hammerfell?” He questioned Amethyst by the tone of her skin.

“No. We’re travellers.” Peridot stated, consciously flipping her hood back over her head even though it invited heat to cook her brain. Being birthed with pointed ears wasn’t very fashionable in Skyrim as of late. A civil war and racist people didn’t help that.

“But you must have a place where you were born and call home.”

“Not for us. We’re just …around.” Amethyst said humourlessly. A touch of threat to drop the subject in her voice balanced her clear look of ‘I don’t want to talk about it.’

The Imperial looked thrown off-center, probably unacquainted with defensive responses to his easily practiced question. “Oh. Well-”

Amethyst and Peridot closed the shop door behind them.

“Whelp.” Amethyst shrugged, shadow peeling away from her form as they stepped out from under the building’s terrace. “Leg it to Whiterun?”

“Rent an inn room there?”

“Sounds good to me.” Amethyst stretched with discomfort, her armour heavy and clunky. “Gods, I need a bed.”

Riverwood was a town travellers mostly passed through, so it didn’t necessarily possess the protection and guard like the cities did. Based on the banks of the White river, much produce came in the form of fresh fish and mudcrab. The lumber mill – powered by the river - also drew in great coin, but the labour going into it was back-breaking. A blacksmith provided weapons for the ongoing civil war, which the town for the most part was bubbled away from. The community shared vegetables and ingredients, while the Riverwood trader and Sleeping Giant inn sold local produce and imported goods. It was essentially a self-sufficient and tight-knit populace.

Walking through the town was very calming, with every sound - like the conversation of people or the clunk of the smithy - being backed up by the gentle flow of the river. So it was quite terrifying when a thunderous boom and crash came from the sky.

“What in Oblivion was that?!” yelled a man.

**_“Dragon!!”_ **

The sound was alike to the crack of lightening crossed with the shout of a warrior, compacted into one mighty roar, and people’s screams became audible as the sound echoed away.

“Shit, Peri, run!” Amethyst yelped, grabbing Peridot before dashing under the local tavern’s terrace for protection. From under the minimal wooden shelter and within a small huddled gathering of people, Amethyst held Peridot tightly to her, their scope on the situation minimal. With a dragon supposedly burning down Helgen - the next town up - and draugr wandering their tombs, a dragon attack sounded more plausible than it should have. At least they were armoured.

As the two waited to hear flames hurtled and beastly roaring, it soon became apparent that nothing was happening. The initial yelps of panic had not continued, just like the mysterious sound had ebbed away. The tavern terrace started to clear and Peridot freed herself to be greeted with the sight of confused townspeople chattering and looking up to the sky. No one appeared to be hurt or running for their lives from the maw of a dragon. The sky was clear apart from days old smoke and the midday sun.

“What the fuck _was_ that?!” Growled Amethyst, her fluffed up hair giving her quite a bewildered look. She pawed at one of her ears.

Peridot turned back to her. “I don’t know. Not a dragon though, I don’t think. Are you okay?” She asked, clasping Amethyst’s padded shoulder and showing concern.

“Yeah.” She shook her head before scenting the air. “Yeah I am. Just sensory stuff.”

Information started to come to them in the scrambled form of various vibrant conversations. The general murmur was that the Helgen rumours were true, but there was also talk of the crackling shout coming from the Throat of the World – the tallest mountain in Skyrim and all of Tamriel; which also held itself above Riverwood. Peridot craned her head up to find the top of the bordering mountain screened by clouds, and for a strange moment she felt something was up there. She bought her gaze back to Amethyst, who was patting down her mane.

“Let’s just get to Whiterun, okay?”

“Yeah.”

* * *

 

The used cobblestone road clung to the edge of mountain and forest, the air smelling of pollen and water. Melted snow trickled down the ascent, winding around eroded rock. Healthy green grass swayed in the slight, chilly breeze, and fir trees whispered strangely in the wind. Peridot spotted a few wolves by their pelts, but they weren’t a worry if both parties kept their distance. The White river accompanied them for some of the trip, mostly providing background noise to their conversations that were hidden away from the rest of the world. They shortly found their way back into civilisation, passing vaguely fenced areas that farmed blond, strawy wheat for mead production. The sky was starting to shift to an orange palette, and it was becoming evening when they were in sight of the city of Whiterun, Dragonsreach standing proudly at its peak. Peridot came to stop at the foot of a vast open field, and Amethyst slipped herself around her from behind, taking her hands.

They didn’t say anything, they didn’t need to speak. It was just quiet time between them, a small stop and smell the (mountain) flowers moment. Amethyst breathed in Peridot’s scent at her nape, picking up sweat and the lingering stink of death mingling amongst it. She couldn’t’ve asked for anything else.

Peridot slipped her hands from Amethyst, needing them. She stepped away to slide her bow off her back, taking no arrows from her quiver. Amethyst re-attached herself to her partner’s back, leaning lazily and affectionately as she watched Peridot stretch her bow string out, delicately and sternly focusing on something in the distance before bringing the string back without releasing it. She’d held her breath from habit, blowing it out in a controlled manner while bringing the bow back down.

Amethyst kept her chin on her shoulder, closing her eyes with the contentedness of a cat. The sunset made a lively glow around Peridot, illuminating the sharpness of her face, exaggerating her concentrated frown. Amethyst was struck with one of those moments where she was incredibly grateful for her, a peaceful and doting emotion blooming in her chest. Making coin kept them on the move, so moments like these were worth, well, _more_ than gold to Amethyst.

“Wanna come out here and kill stuff at night time?” she offered lazily.

Peridot was halfway through stretching and aiming the bow again. She cocked her head towards Amethyst before returning her gaze to the rocky field. “I’m sure you’re inferring that you won’t be human in that time instance.”

“Yup.” Amethyst popped the p, sliding a hand around Peridot’s chest and nuzzling further, using her partner’s body to shield her eyes from the dying sun. Peridot’s hair painted her scrunching face half bronze and half shadow.

“I’m entertaining the idea-”

“It’s a very entertaining idea.” Amethyst affirmed.

“-but I’d actually like to sleep tonight.”

“Perriii…" Amethyst teased. "Inn room’s pro’ly only got one bed.” Her thick lips found Peridot’s neck and her voice dropped a few octaves in a husky mumble.

Whatever it was was clearly inappropriate, Peridot stiffening with a shy whisper of 'oh stars' before giving Amethyst an urgent, heated look. Amethyst couldn’t’ve asked for anything else as she cackled heartily and they kept moving to Whiterun.  

* * *

 

The inn room only had one bed.

The stone walls surrounding the city were high and protective, but Peridot and Amethyst’s shared thought was that dragons could fly. Bandit raids were sure to end in Whiterun’s favour, but a mythical, leathery-winged lizard that breathed fire at will and could lift itself into the air was not going to follow the winding manned path up to the front gates, knock on the wooden barricaded doors and say, “Salutations, may I kindly burn your city to the ground?” It wasn’t a major worry for them since 1. they were visitors and 2. dragons weren’t(?) real, but it would be nice to still have Whiterun on the map in any case.

Lightly strummed notes from a lute floated up from the common room below, a calm noise that gently penetrated Amethyst and Peridot’s private atmosphere. A level above the tipsy chatter and crackling pit fire was just enough to seclude them comfortably. The sewn pelts of the blanket sheltered their now clean and bare bodies from the night time chill, hardly kept out by the wooden infrastructure of the inn.

Naps, drinking and dining had constituted their evening into the night, which helped them slip into comfort and repair. The money they earned let them have more than cabbage for dinner, as well as a room in the local inn for the night and plenty left over for extra mead. They’d in fact just woken up from a few hours rest that was prompted by full tummies.

“So why’dya think this place is called _‘The Bannered Mare’_?” Amethyst sleepily pondered, comfortably nuzzling into Peridot’s short, straight hair and brushing her hands in other places. Her eyes were happily slit like a drowsy cat as she cuddled Peridot to her, feeling the light warmth her thinner body gave off.

The inn was like all others in Skyrim; populated with people escaping the chill of the land and their own lives, happy to fill their bellies with warm mead and drink away the night to the tune of wartime songs. This establishment didn’t seem to attract much outsiders, but Amethyst and Peridot still received a hearty Nord welcome (‘How many can you down before you drop?’, ‘What type of ale do you want with that venison?’, and a drunken invite to a brawl aimed at Amethyst - who _may have_ knocked someone’s teeth out).   

“I have no idea. There was no horse theme or insignia in the common room.” Peridot gave, pulling the covers tighter over them and giving a shiver unrelated to the outside chill.

“Aww, my fingers too cold?” Amethyst chuckled, pressing kisses to Peridot’s face repeatedly. Her Dibella amulet she wore clinked and jingled as Peridot’s paler fingers friskily tangled in it.

“Amethyst, you always radiate the inhuman temperature of a _living furnace_.” Peridot complained, giving a little gaspy hitch of breath. She shifted her body closer with apparent relation to what Amethyst was doing below the blankets.

“Well, I am pretty inhuman.” Amethyst mumbled huskily, speaking through the presses of her lips against her lover’s. She moved gracefully to attend an earlobe as Peridot closed her eyes and gave a small moan. “Speakin’ of which, I smelt a whole lotta dogs around here. Easily a pack, ‘specially in a city.”

Peridot hummed, opening her eyes a fraction to catch the side of Amethyst’s head. She slid her thin fingers up her neck in a delectable manner, making shivers rack Amethyst’s plump body as she found her way into thick and fluffy black hair. “Are we going to avoid them?”

“Mmm, yeah. Don’t wanna piss ‘em off.” She answered, sucking on the shell of an ear before poking her fat tongue into the crevices. Her reception was a hand in her smug face and a cringing body.

“ _Ew!_ You have so many better places to put that!” whined Peridot, cupping her damp ear and looking offended.

“Want me to use it right now?” Amethyst performed an obscene gesture with her tongue. Peridot scowled and was probably half considering it behind those ferocious glinting eyes.

The bed squeaked as Amethyst somewhat rolled herself on top of her partner, lovingly finding her hand that lay resting on the pillow and taking it. From above it appeared they were doing a horizontal waltz, with their hands stretched and clasped like they were. “Whaaat? I meant smoochin’ with tongue.” Amethyst professed, displaying the offending muscle. “What were _you_ thinking, huh? Dirtydot.”

“I swear to Dibella I’m going to bite you.” Peridot growled. And then she did just that by lowering her head and pinching Amethyst’s dark flesh between her teeth.

“Ooo, a _love_ bite~.” Amethyst praised, eyes fluttering shut and brows creasing at the mixture of bliss and pain. “Mmm, wait, don’t you want one from me? I mean, I do have two of my fingers halfway up your-ow.”

Peridot huffed pleasurably, buried in Amethyst’s shoulder and refusing to let go. She’d clenched her jaw harder and shortened her partner’s dirty talk considerably.

Amethyst hissed as she felt her clamped skin lapped over. “Owie. If you’re gonna do that then I can’t hear you make my favourite noises…”

The hand in her dark hair tightened defiantly and warm breath washed over her strong shoulder.

“Mmm, fine.” She turned her head and licked a stripe up Peridot’s cheek, making her cringe and puff bitterly. “I’ll just play a little bit harder.”

Stubborn squeaky grunts came from Peridot as Amethyst pressed into her under the cover of the blankets. Green eyes scrunched in ecstatic frustration, Peridot’s limbs squeezing Amethyst just that little bit tighter as they rocked. The blankets covering their legs wriggled like a skeever was running amok in them, and every visible part of Peridot was starting to really flush and glisten with sweat. Amethyst’s arm was visibly pumping below the sheets.

Peridot breathed as well as a person did when their mouth was latched onto something, but soon the oxygen needed was succeeding the amount only her nose was taking in and she had to let go, moaning in a reedy cry. Spittle remained and linked her to the teeth marks she left.

Amethyst pretty much pounced on her from there, crashing their lips together and performing all manner of ministrations on Peridot, judging by the watery ‘oh’s and ‘ah’s she tended to switch back and forth from. Peridot’s hand squeezed Amethyst’s tighter on the pillow.

One of her eyes peeked open as she moaned. “D-Don’t stop!”

“Wouldn’t dream of it Peri.” Amethyst groaned back, kissing her sharp jawline and feeling muscles tense with her hand. Peridot’s pants turned to breathless gasps and then arcing moans and Amethyst held her down dominantly. She keened Amethyst’s name and shook before going still under her, chest heaving to regain that spent oxygen.

“Hope that felt as good as it sounded.” Amethyst remarked, displaying a cocky grin. She rolled off of Peridot and onto her back, lapping her coated fingers lazily. “Okay, my turn.”

Peridot groaned exhaustedly, too tired to move. “Uhn, gimme a minute…”

* * *

 

Peridot’s small chest rose and fell gently as she slept, a quiet whistle from her nose sounding with every exhale. Amethyst watched with deep brown eyes, tightly keeping the blankets around them as she lay strictly at her side. She rested a hand around Peridot’s lean waist to hold the sheets to her partner’s more vulnerable form, protecting her from the iciness that still had yet to leave with the rise of the sun. Her legs scissored Peridot’s between them, holding like the snare of a wolf’s jaw. Her flabby stomach and chest pressed to a lean back and generous behind, providing warmth.

Amethyst had woken up first, as usual. Some who knew her would say that she was lazy when she clocked off her waking hours early, but excluding tiring travel, the half-Redguard got little sleep. Her body was restless if she was unconscious, and often she woke tensing her fingers and jaw. If they stayed somewhere with a single bed, Peridot complained regularly of being kicked.

She dipped her pudgy nose into her girlfriend’s collarbone, a bored and lonely expression on her face. She’d let Peridot get her sleep otherwise she’d be grumpy, but Amethyst was highly anticipating when she’d wake up. Her dark fingers traced the tanned and bony expanses of Peridot’s side absentmindedly. She was even smaller when she wasn’t wearing her armour.

The light touches weren’t the cause, but soon after the other woman woke up, evident by a weird snort sounding from her pointy nose. Amethyst snickered as Peridot squinted awake, watching her roof-directed glare before she started to recognize her surroundings.

“Hey cutie.” Amethyst buried her face in her rousing torso while Peridot nestled her nose into Amethyst’s sweaty hair. Peridot took a deep inhale and released it in a happy sigh.

“Ahh…You smell like sex…”

Amethyst mumbled adoringly from Peridot’s clavicle. “Your face smells like puss.”

“I’ll need to bathe again before we go.” Peridot swiped her wrist across her mouth and chin a little like a cat before poking her tongue out mischievously. “How’s the headboard?”

They both looked above them to the bed’s headboard, which now featured - courtesy of Amethyst - a nice big crack in the intricately carved wood. They looked back at each other, grinning.

“Think they’ll notice?” Amethyst purred, leaning in to nuzzle again. Peridot felt her warm morning breath on her face and vice versa.

“Mmm, not if we place a cloth over it or something. If we leave the room neat it should make up for it.”

“Totally.” They held hands under the blanket and tangled their legs. Amethyst lay her head back on her pillow and closed her eyes, feeling the lack of sleep. “Did’ya like that stew they served up? I was just thinkin’ ‘bout it.”

“Yes. It was nice and warm like a cuddle from you.” Peridot pressed her lips against her forehead. "Mwah.”

“Aww, you’re sappy and I love it.”

Peridot’s chest heaved as she giggled, settling herself back on her elbows and exposing down to her happy trail. “Do you have an idea on what time it is?” she yawned.

“Uhh, breakfast time?” Amethyst suggested, lying on her tummy. “I dunno.” She buried her face in her own fluffy hair. “Think rent’s up soon? You bet she’ll charge us an extra ten septims for loungin’ around in here?”

“Hopefully not.”

“Yeah. I want more shut eye.”

Amethyst relaxed into her own black mane, rolling her shoulders before settling. She had three minutes of said shut eye before she seemed to think of something. “Hey, Peri, my love?” she yawned.

“Hmm?”

“How many septims we got left after last night?”

“I’ll put in an inquiry, nyeheh.”

Peridot’s arm reached for the bedside table draw, where they’d stashed their earnings and other valuables for the night. She bought her arm back to her chest and pried open their drawstring reward purse with her fingers before peeking inside. She looked back into Amethyst’s awaiting face with dread.

“Shit.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what you think!


	3. Grin and bear it (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amethyst and Peridot stretch their budget way too thin for their liking and decide that acquiring more gold is an immediate must if they don't want to starve.

Armour was all belts and buckles, and the restricted movement was a problem when it came to dodging something that the armour couldn’t take. The shoulder pads, especially Amethyst’s, prohibited a full swing of an arm (limits on hugging needed to be mentioned too), and under armour had to be worn since extended use would cause chaffing (and major cases of BO). Sneaking was basically prohibited by Amethyst’s armour and hindered by Peridot’s, which often let future dinner get a decent head start. Nonetheless, the clunky steel and choppy leather sets they owned had gotten the job done through their time together. Well, they had to. There was no other choice. Armour was…out of their price range.

“Shit Peri, _20 septims?!_ That’s another night’s stay here!” Amethyst stressed, clapping the dirt from her patterned steel boots onto the floor, her plain brown under armour hanging from her shoulders, giving her a very rushed look. “What the heck are we doing after that, huh?”

“I know, I know!” Peridot growled, shaking the buckles free from being tucked up in her leather chest piece. “ _We said we wouldn’t do this again!_ ”

It had to be admitted that becoming (very) low on money had happened plenty of times in their (recent) past. The spotty line of work they grasped at didn’t supply a steady stream of income, and most of that income needed to be used in travel and recovery expenses; almost none of it was disposable (but much of it was used as such). Thankfully(?), Amethyst and Peridot had some experience in surviving under these conditions.

“This is bad this is bad this is bad.” Peridot was tugging her hair at this point, a horror-struck look in her eyes. “Amethyst, what do we do!!??”

“Peridot, _cool it_. Use that frost spell you know. I dunno.” Amethyst said, having regained her own cool by thinking of a solution. “Innkeepers _talk_. Like, to _everyone_ who passes through here. We just gotta ask her where to find someone with a problem.” She balled her fist against her palm. “ _Easy-peasy_.”

They secured knowledge of a job up in the mountains (thankfully not Bleak Falls Barrow related), where a woman wanted a bear problem taken care of. The two were questioned by their information source – the innkeeper - who doubted they should take it if they even remotely valued their lives.

They thanked her regardless and got the heck outta there to avoid the damage fee that was bound to be incurred when the headboard was inspected.

“It is quite possible at this _very_ _moment_ she’s damning all lesbians to Oblivion.” Peridot snickered naughtily, lips quirking queerly under the discretion of her palm. Dirt crunched under them as they strolled out of the protective walls of Whiterun.

“Pfffft-!” Amethyst jostled as she cackled, holding her protected stomach. “-she’s just shakin’ her fist at the sky and screaming ‘ _LESBIANS_ ’!!” she howled in a mock voice, giggling before sighing reflectively. “Ahahh, we…we’re never gonna be allowed back there, are we?”

“Most likely not.”

As it turned out, 20 septims was also a carriage trip to Riften. Along that route was the remote town of Ivarstead, a small village on the flank of the Throat of the World and the location of their next paycheck. The horse-drawn carriage was stationed out the front of the city, with two other passengers clambering up the wooden rear as they approached the driver.

“Two headed for Riften?” Peridot stated unsurely, presenting the last of their precious coin. The Nord man sitting on the dashboard glanced down at them and the wandering adventurers anxiously watched as he took the small pieces of gold from Peridot’s padded palm. Hopefully this would work out.

It had to.

“Many thanks. Climb aboard and we’ll be ready to go.”

With the rear steps of the carriage being made for taller people in mind, Amethyst and Peridot struggled up onto the vehicle, sitting away from the two other travellers and huddling together in the permanently cold weather. The horse whinnied and the carriage jolted forward, signalling the start of their next journey. Wooden wheels creaked and bumped over cobbled stone, cycling and carrying the rickety cart forward. Whiterun soon grew to be covered in a sheet of fog and the path began to hug the mountainside.

* * *

 

“Hey _c’mon_ , we should get _some_ money back.” The irritation in Amethyst’s voice was clear. “We’re not goin’ the full way.”

The forest smelt of dew and the calls of birds echoed lightly through the ancient, quiet trees. The temperature was slightly warmer than it was back in Whiterun despite the area being higher in altitude, snow replaced with spritely grass and fluttering butterflies. The fir canopy was thick and made some sections dark, but the clouded sun sought them out through many tree-less gaps. Wind passed through the trees and the waterfall they’d crossed over rumbled in the background of everyone’s conscious. The foreground was taken up by arguing voices.

“Don’t fool yourselves into believing you’re the only ones the civil war is affecting. I need gold just as much as you do.” Came the driver’s steady voice. His horse stomped the damp ground while branches creaked against one another.

“Yeah? Well guess who needs to travel! _Everyone!_ Guess who needs to fight a bear! Just _us!_ We’re not your only customers, _bimbo_.” Amethyst spat, making her point. They legitimately had no money left now. They were practically weaponized beggars.

“Our _only_ customer _requires_ us to fight a bear.” said Peridot. Accentuation was key.

“Soooo, we need those extra coins more than you do.” Amethyst summed up, crossing her arms and tapping her steel-capped boot.

There was an awkward silence, especially in the back of the carriage where the other commuters were definitely getting a kick out of the free drama. The driver cleared his throat to deliver his decision.

“Well then, I’ll be off. May the gods be with you on your travels, ladies.” And with that well-rehearsed farewell, his wrist flicked to command his horse to carry on. The cart took off with a whinny in the direction of Riften. Peridot yelled after him while Amethyst growled to herself, regretting the use of the word ‘bimbo’ in her appeal.

“Are you kidding me? _Asshole!_ ” Peridot squeaked, her form bristling. “We only used your _cloddy_ service since we didn’t know the way! Dirtbomb!!” Amethyst took hold of her before she got the bright and extremely criminal idea of using her bow to snipe the Nord from afar, killing him instantly.

“Whoa Peri.” She pacified like she was soothing an agitated miniature pony. “Slow down girl. There’s no point in goin’ after him.”

Amethyst was right, even if she didn’t want to be. Having the law against them – as weaponized beggars, currently – did not work out well. They’d have to stay in one place, constantly sheltered from the elements and hostile people, and be guaranteed food at least once a day. Wait…

“Doesn’t he know who I am?” Peridot growled, frustrated. “The Great and Lovable?”

“Yeah, he shouldn’t disrespect you if he knows what’s good!” Amethyst said, playing along. “He should know that-“ she paused, quickly thinking something up “-that you’re the _Dragonborn!_ _Ooooo!_ ” she fawned and flattered, throwing fake sighs into the natural atmosphere.

Peridot blinked before a sharp smile broke out on her face. “Um, why yes, I am! That is correct! And he shall fear my dragon-murdering voice!” She planted her foot down in a powerful stomp and yelled at a small boulder, her nasally voice carrying around the landscape. Nothing happened.

“Don’t mess with my prophesized girlfriend!” Amethyst hooted, scooping Peridot up in a bridal hold and smecking her cheek affectionately. “Fuck _that_ guy! Let’s go get our prophesized cash!”

Peridot giggled uncontrollably as Amethyst left the lightly paved path and begun ascending the steep beaten dirt one. She dug her feet into the damp dirt and stumbled to the top, wheezing a great deal when she put Peridot back down. Armour plus Peridot plus charging up a steep incline equalled an exhausted Amethyst.

“That was a bad idea, Dragondude…” she heaved, resting her hands on her thighs in a poor recovery position. “Don’t let me do stupid shit like that in the future, okay?”

“You’re reminding me of the men on the carriage.” Peridot crossed her brown leather gauntlets. “That’s all they grumbled about.”

“Whaaat, stupid shit?” Amethyst left a pause for laughter before getting none and continuing anyway. “But yeah,” she panted, straightening and beginning to walk forward. “Dragonborn _this_ and Dragonborn _that_. Somethin’ about that ka- _boom_ we heard in Riverwood bein’ the sound of the Dragonborn slayin’ a dragon? And that it was in like, ancient _‘dragon tongue’?_ Bleh _._ ” she quoted with her fingers, lolling her tongue out for supposed emphasis.

“To be honest, I’m particularly intrigued that all this legend is resurfacing now.” Peridot blinked and tilted her head up as a rain drop plopped on her nose, the grey clouds rumbling as if in satisfaction that they had caught her attention. “With recent events, I think the coming of a hero is something the Nords currently need to hear. It’s subconsciously... reassuring?”

“Ohh, you think it’s like us with Kynareth?”

They made it their own little tradition to wear Kynareth amulets as they journeyed through the lands together. Wearing a sacred object of the patron goddess of travellers made them feel safer and more secure on the roads, which could easily lead to any danger imaginable, from packs of bandits to sketchy mages to, well, dragons and the undead now. What next, talking cat men?

“Exactly.” Peridot’s hand went to feel at her neck as if to demonstrate she was wearing hers. “Are you wearing it?”

Several rain drops made Amethyst’s face flinch. “Nope. I got it with me though. Wouldn’t forget.” She winked.

The weather decided to grow wet and droplets began collecting on the creases in their armour, falling down straight from the sky or dribbling and flicking off the trees above them. Peridot put her brown hood on and Amethyst complained.

“Ugghhh, you’ve got your little hood to put on and I’ve got this-“ she gestured to her long black hair “-this _boof_ to detangle later. And the rain messes up all the smells. Everything is _crap_.” She kicked a pebble to express her annoyance.

“ _Amethyst_ , _Ams,_ _Big_ _A_ , it’s _okay!_ ” Peridot stretched her arms out and spun around in the light rain. Amethyst thought she looked like the cutest assassin ever.

“Why’re you so happy all of a sudden? It’s raining and we have no money and you were angry like five minutes ago, remember?”

“ _Because_ , _Amethyst_ ,” Peridot had that smug tone, like she knew all the answers. Amethyst snickered as Peridot tripped over a protruding rock she wasn’t paying attention to. As they ascended up sharp paths, there were more of those and less great pines. “up there is _one_ ” she held up a digit “angry bear, and _tons_ of little gold coins with _our_ names on them!”

The now slippery path flattened out and the two were presented with a harsh river that dropped off and became the waterfall they’d seen earlier. Tree limbs caught in the shallow, rocky water and the flow was only accelerated by the steadily increasing weather. The river had a dam of tree parts but it didn’t look very stable to cross.

“Aw geez, the banks are overflowing.” Amethyst squinted, the weather along with the spraying river covering much in drizzly mist. Her hair clung to her face and she scowled as they powered up the slight incline, following the rapid water as it flowed in reverse to them.

“Okay, now I’m less happy.” Peridot commented, trekking ahead of Amethyst. They stayed in arm’s length of one another, Amethyst ready to catch Peridot if she slipped. Peridot yelled over her shoulder, eyes slit shut, attempting to be heard over the river and pelting rain. “WHICH DIRECTION IS IVARSTEAD AGAAAAIIN?”

Amethyst clasped a jutting boulder to help herself over it. She was irritable and drenched and ecstatic to find this obscure little town and get under some most likely impractical shelter - since they couldn’t afford another room and all. “Just up this cruddy path. Keep--“

She was interrupted by a hitch in Peridot’s breath. It was quiet, but strangely, in that moment, it was louder than the rain and river.

The smell hit Amethyst too late, and then the wet black fur and yellow teeth came into sight when she looked past Peridot. Long, downy arms swung forward, guided by three grotesque, beady eyes. With no regard for herself, Amethyst pushed Peridot out of the way and barreled into the chest of the garish troll. Peridot nearly slipped in the mud but righted herself in time to see Amethyst wrestling with the humanoid beast, who was easily a head above her.

Amethyst managed to land a gauntlet into its bearded throat, but it only seemed to cough at the assault. A snort came from the creature’s nose, and Amethyst couldn't avoid the fined nails that collided and scraped against her waist as she hurriedly shifted her own. “G-ah, _shit!!”_

“ _AMETHYST!!_ ” screamed Peridot, and thick canine teeth made their way into Amethyst’s shoulder, regardless of armour. Amethyst cried hoarsely and tried to wrestle out of the troll’s mauling hold as tears blurred her vision.

“ _Fuck!!_ ” she gasped.

The sensation of a growing heat started to settle in and above her, the troll’s shocked growl vibrated through damaged armour and Amethyst’s eardrum. Flames streamed from Peridot’s gloved hand and burned into the fur of the creature’s muscled back as she rounded it and attacked from an unguarded side. The oily, coarse hair set alight even in the rain, and the smell of burnt flesh began to waft from the humanoid creature as it bellowed in pain.

The troll didn’t have time to turn around before Peridot charged it, leaping and stabbing the monster in the back with an unsheathed iron dagger, pulling it out only to shove it back in violently. Deep red blood coated her haphazardly but at this point it was the least of her worries. Her voice cracked as she screamed at the beast trying to take Amethyst’s life, burying the knife into its thick hide each time. “Die! Die! Die! _Die!!_ ”

The troll released Amethyst to focus on her, leaving the half-Redguard to kneel to the mud in pain, bleeding nastily.

The lumbering troll had a hobbling gait as it stumbled towards her, its dangling, muscled arms seemingly longer that its stubby legs. Its hunched shoulders supported an enraged expression punctuated by bloody fangs – _Amethyst’s_ blood - and quickly Peridot found herself avoiding log-thick arms that it swung clumsily. It set off its own balance and struggled to regain it due to blood loss, so before it could start its renowned regeneration abilities, Peridot dropped her dagger to utilise fire magic with both of her hands.

She cried out as she sent an intolerably hot barrage of flames straight into the monster’s furred chest. The minor stone-like protrudences on its hairless shoulders glinted in the glow as the troll roared in anguish, attempting to block its bearded face from the merciless direct heat.

It dropped an arm to try to incapacitate Peridot with its three-fingered hand, but that was a fatal mistake as it opened itself up to more painful burns. With a quiet grunt, it collapsed to the ground. Not sure if it had died or not, Peridot, panic-stricken, rolled its heavy body into the river, black fur disappearing and reappearing as it flowed with the current downstream. She was too concerned about Amethyst to see it collide with submerged boulders and collect on the dammed branches, flailing against the violent current - hopefully dead.

“Amethyst!!”

Amethyst had taken to laying on the ground, appearing unable to hold herself comfortably up due to the wounds on her waist. Mud had clung to her as Peridot attempted to lift her to kneel. Amethyst’s crinkled right shoulder armour exposed her bleeding wound to the now pouring rain and she hissed. Long black hair was muddied and soaked, and her own crimson blood streaked her silver steel armour.

“Can--can you walk?”

Amethyst groaned before answering, lifting her pained gaze to Peridot’s. “It’s gonna hurt like a bitch if I do. _Fuck_...” She hissed, wincing.

Ivarstead still required vigorous climbing to reach, and Peridot could slip and injure them both if she tried to carry an armoured Amethyst. They also didn’t know the extent of Amethyst’s injuries; she was always protected from any infection or disease that the troll’s fangs and claws bought, but she could still easily die from blood loss and possible internal injury. The situation overwhelmed Peridot, and as the rain beat down on them, soaking her hair, clinging to her clothes, collecting in her boots, all she felt she could do was curse their patron goddess in desperation, seeking comfort in Amethyst’s mop of hair.

“Heh…” Amethyst panted in pain, fighting to grin. Here, Peridot could see her attempted transformation by the size of her canines. “…lucky me, huh? I forgot to…ughn, wear that damn amulet…” She shakily reached in and presented her clean Kynareth amulet from her bloodied pocket.

Peridot’s face didn’t crack into a smile at Amethyst’s attempt at humour in the situation. Amethyst’s grin faded in response, and then her eyes appeared unfocused and droopy. More of her weight leaned into Peridot like she’d forgotten how to hold herself up. “Whoa, fuck...”

“Amethyst?”

Amethyst took a while to reassure Peridot, instead shaking her head and attempting to stand again, Peridot supporting her as she managed to take a step. With an honest 'nope', she kneeled back down in Peridot's grasp, panting from the pain and exertion. Peridot asked what was wrong.

“Just…a lil' dizzy, dude...”

“Amethyst, you’re hurt quite badly. I need to heal you.“

“Nah, I’ll live, jus’ gimme a sec.” Amethyst moved her head around to look for the troll, her breathing laboured. “Man, you really… did a number on that thing. Where’s--Where’s he go?”

“He’s-- it’s dead. In the river. I need to find somewhere safe out of this rain to heal you. It’s getting way too dark for my liking.”

“Fuck though, that…that burnt flesh stank. I think… ’m gonna puke…”

Peridot yelped. “Not now, Amethyst--!"

Amethyst didn’t, but her head bobbled weakly and she took long blinks. “Whoa…wait…where did that troll even….even…from…” She mumbled, slurring and slumping further, seeming incredibly out of it. Her hand’s grip on Peridot’s armour faltered and struggled, losing strength, and then it was like she falling asleep in Peridot’s arms.

“Amethyst!” Peridot freed a hand to be able to cup Amethyst’s cheek, only to watch her dark eyes roll back and lids flutter shut. “Keep your eyes open, okay?” She clapped her hand to Amethyst’s cheek in an attempt to keep her alert. “Hey! Amethyst?!”

“’M fine…” Amethyst barely mumbled, becoming deadweight and unresponsive apart from the steady heave of her chest.

Thunder boomed and the rain unrelentingly soaked them both. Peridot’s chest hurt from forgetting how to take in air.

She darted her gaze everywhere, searching for someone to help. Of course, up in this obscure spot in the mountains there was no one, and her vision continued to blur every time she blinked, shielding potential enemies and dangers from her view. Another flash of lightning took the breath out of her, but the light from the bolt transiently illuminated the area, revealing how the troll had caught them so unawares. There against the rocky path was a shallow, hollowed out shelter, a cave that she could see the back of. A candle of hope started to flicker in her heart.

“A-Amethyst, I-I’m going to--going to move you.”

Amethyst gave a short huff that might’ve been affirmation, but other than that Peridot could see no sign of reception on her face. Precious seconds couldn’t be allowed to waste anymore, so without a sure reply, Peridot carefully lifted Amethyst’s torso. Letting her partner’s boots drag in the mud, Peridot tried to balance being gentle and making haste to the cave, worrying about worsening the wounds on Amethyst’s waist. Amethyst was making quiet groaning noises, to which every one Peridot profusely apologized.

Noting a stop to the pelting on her drenched hood and hearing the rain echo from outside, Peridot struggled to carefully lower Amethyst, laying her down in the off-smelling shelter. Evidently, it had been the troll’s dwelling, as miscellaneous bones and goat hooves littered the stone ground. That was the least of Peridot’s concerns however, as Amethyst had trailed dark red blood into the shallow cavern. Hopefully the rain would overpower the smell of iron to the perception of any more beasts of the wild.

“Okay, okay, the blood, I need to stop the blood.” She muttered to herself, kneeling next to Amethyst. She could hear her own shuddering breaths bouncing off the walls and into her ears as she watched Amethyst dumbly, waiting for something to happen. She felt as if Amethyst would just wake and sit up at any moment, despite her clear lack of conscious as she lay expressionless. Peridot felt like everything would clear up on its own, like pain and misery disappearing after a swig of a soothing health potion (they’d run out of those, too, before the barrow).

But this was of course not how it worked, and now Amethyst wasn’t making any huffs or groans. Hurriedly pulling off her leather gauntlet, Peridot hovered her trembling palm over her partner’s nose and mouth. Relief sparked in her anxiety-gripped chest as her hand was warmed every few seconds by Amethyst’s consistent breathing. However, nothing could be assured yet. Amethyst was getting worse and it was Peridot’s fault.

Peridot pressed her bare palm to Amethyst’s bloodied shoulder, closing her eyes to try and focus her magicka. The rain was deafening against the stone, and she was chilled to the bone, and she couldn’t see much of anything because it had become nerve-wrackingly dark, and they were in the open, there was the possibility of the cave flooding, and Amethyst was fucking bleeding out right in front of her-

Gravel crunched underfoot. Peridot only had two seconds to question whether she actually heard it or not before the sound came again, and again. Someone or something was out there, approaching the cave, and Peridot truly believed her heart was going to give out then and there. The heaving of her chest wouldn’t stop no matter how hard she tried, and she became frightened of how loud she was panting, backing up and clutching for the rocky wall of the shelter. She could hide, she could hide here, right up against the wall in the dark, and the rain would cover her breathing and the danger would pass and she wouldn’t be killed.

But…Amethyst.

Amethyst was lying close to the wide entrance, and the gaping maw of the suddenly frightening outside world was going to swallow her whole. Quickly, she had to act, scrambling forth on her hands and knees to grab Amethyst and drag her in further to safety, regardless of her injuries. Clasping the broken shoulder of Amethyst’s steel armour, Peridot tugged, not expecting Amethyst to quietly mumble her name.

Peridot also didn’t expect to be greeted by the last sound she wanted to hear right now: the sound of a blade being unsheathed. Accompanying it was that unsettling, familiar lilac glow that eerily lit up the stone and puddled water around it, making Peridot’s blood run cold.

Standing just outside, behind a blanket of streaming water, was the woman they had encountered in the barrow, drenched from head to toe and wearing a glare that could kill; and wielding a weapon that could enact that with ease.

Peridot whimpered.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Edit: Edited a lot of the last part of the chapter to make Amethyst more conscious instead of completely unconscious)
> 
> she’s under a lot of pressure okay? don’t kill her
> 
> (I finally finished this fuckig chapter thank the gods. It literally had 200 words to go so I really wanted to get it over with ‘cause I’ve been sitting on it for months. Amedotweek stuff and nsfw oneshot coming up shortly.)
> 
> Also how many times have i fucking attempted to transform only to be killed halfway through. Happened heaps on my first playthrough of Skyrim.


End file.
